


offstage

by dinnerwithseungwan



Series: meet me in the library [1]
Category: Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, No Angst, University AU, everyone wants to date seungwan, i am everyone, im tired of wenrene angst, theater musical
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-07
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-17 05:35:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28594830
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dinnerwithseungwan/pseuds/dinnerwithseungwan
Summary: joohyun never understood why everyone's crushing on this blonde theater rookie. until she was made to.(or, joohyun is just really in denial)
Relationships: Bae Joohyun | Irene/Son Seungwan | Wendy
Series: meet me in the library [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2096565
Comments: 14
Kudos: 154





	1. act 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello. my first fic. im trying writing casually and at one sitting just to relieve acads stress. 
> 
> im sorry for the lapslock. it's just how im used to. i'll edit if it's hard to read. this will be just a two-chapter work.

it would have been ridiculous, joohyun thinks. it is ridiculous to cast a total theater rookie in their annual year-end production to play one of the lead roles. year-end productions are always their biggest stages, and it is always imperative to pick the best performers.

joohyun knows. she has been doing this for three years, either as an actress or as part of the production crew. the pressure is massive. the schedules are crazy. the last quarter of the year is most demanding for the performing arts program. 

well, it would have been totally ridiculous to let a sophomore with no experience with musicals to play as a lead. only that this blonde makes it make sense. that sophomore walked in during the auditions, and impressed everyone in the hall with her raw talents and potential. everyone including joohyun. 

her name is seungwan. a name you may have already heard around the campus. seungwan, that friendly blonde with a perpetually handsome smirk on her lips. it is not hard to understand why she is one of the more popular underclassmen. joohyun has heard her friends talk, _swoon,_ about this seungwan. she is an honorary member of every campus organization you can think of. she is always invited to parties by the jocks, the cheerleaders, the cool ones. she is even the champion of the nerds, and the scholars- seungwan is in a joint honors degree program, taking both performance arts and humanities, with a gpa qualifying her into dean's list every semester since she enrolled. those kinds of almost perfect people should not be allowed to exist- but here she is, sharing laughs with the creative people near the downstage left wing.

now, you see, seungwan is not totally foreign to performance stages. she has emceed some of their university events before, sings for her band during school fairs, and she even dances! but musical, she admitted, is something she has never done before. not on this scale. this may be why she is now walking towards joohyun with a stupidly charming grin stretched across her face.

they just finished their chemistry read, which went pretty underwhelming, to be honest. both of them are aware that they do not have the best compatibility, _yet_ \- seungwan is friendly, and joohyun is popular herself, and they may have bumped into each other through their mutual circles a couple of times. they may be acquainted, but they are not _exactly_ friends. and this production, the brainchild of their theater advisor, requires an obvious chemistry between the two female leads.

joohyun should have known better what she was getting into when the pre-production panel discussed to the successful auditionees how they will adapt the teen cult movie _clueless_ (1995) into their own. instead of the queen bee realizing she has been in love with her ex-stepbrother ( _that's is gross_ , the sound director assistant also in her junior year comments), joohyun will realize she has been in love with the new kid she practically raised into popularity (ironically, it is seungwan), and who saw through her vanity. after all, it is not theater if it is not gay. it is supposed to be fun, and modern, and light. a full 180 swing from last year's _cabaret_.

"are you leaving already?" the (not tragically unhip) new kid poses with an unusually plain smile. "i'm sorry about the read."

"it's okay," joohyun shrugs. she picks up the script and shoves it into her bag. "it's just the first read."

"i think, the stage director is a bit disappointed her leads are not connecting as how she imagined it would be," seungwan lets out a dry laugh and follows it with a sigh.

joohyun tries not to notice how seungwan looks kinda fidgety. her fist opens then closes, tucking her thumb in. joohyun realizes it's her habit when she is nervous- she noticed the same during the auditions and then this afternoon when they had their reading. joohyun, feeling a little considerate, takes it upon herself to ask. "are you going to say something?"

"yes, actually," seungwan looks at her, surprised but eventually, her patented grin forms on her lips. "don't take this the other way, okay? but i kinda feel awkward around you."

those are the words joohyun has heard a thousand of times before from different kinds of people. she is beautiful, intimidating, withdrawn. not the friendliest of the bunch. it does not bother her, really. she wants to tell seungwan it's not news to her. but actually, she just wants to tell seungwan 'same'. for some reasons unbeknownst to her yet, joohyun _is_ awkward around seungwan as well. great, what a perfect disaster for their production.

"okay," joohyun nods and watches the panic imminent on seungwan's face. it was almost funny if only she were not feeling the same uneasiness brewing inside her. "uh, i mean, it's not okay but-"

"do you wanna go out?"

"what?"

joohyun raises an eyebrow.

"what?" seungwan tilts her head in confusion, buffering as well. it took her a moment before realizing what she just said, and the panic completely washed over her. the tinges of pink crawling onto her cheeks awares joohyun of how incredibly fair seungwan's skin is. "i mean, not _go out_ go out. just spend time- _fuck._ you know i am usually pretty eloquent so don't think i am dumb."

"i don't. but you are not making any sense right now."

seungwan pouts. adorably.

"i already had the words rehearsed in my head when i started this conversation."

_cute._

"so tell me."

"okay," seungwan heaves and then breathes out. the confident smile returns to her face the moment she opened her eyes. "do you wanna hangout tomorrow? or any time you are free? just, you know, get to know you better. i mean, i know _you._ who does not," she chuckles then combs her fingers through her hair, her fringes dishevel into an impossibly more attractive arrangement. it is almost unfair, "but maybe we can be less awkward? or something?"

"oh," is all joohyun can say. she has been asked out a thousand of times before, as well, and most of the time, if not all, she declines almost instantly. but today, she considers. it is not a date. joohyun does not even do dates. it is just hanging out. with an acquaintance. someone she will be working closely with for the next weeks. it is not a date. it is just that this stupid, awkward atmosphere between them makes her feel like seungwan just asked her out on a date. it is nauseous. it is tensed. 

"uh, actually, nevermind i said it. you might be busy or something and i should not be making things more awkward."

joohyun hates it when she dives into uncharted emotions, and she must be hating seungwan right now for dragging her into this new territory, but she does not exactly hate it.

it does not have to mean anything, right? and actually, it makes sense. they need to get rid of this awkwardness. she does not understand how it has to be awkward in the first place anyway. they have shared acknowledging hi and hellos before, albeit those are just second interactions, and everyone craves for seungwan's attention joohyun never really had the chance to be a little less not friendly. still, despite her being reticent, joohyun works amicably with her theater peers- first time or not. it is just that something in seungwan is making her feel uneasy. 

she ponders.

seungwan is everything joohyun has long given up to be. seungwan was born with all the talents in the world while joohyun has to work harder. seungwan is always sunny and warm, while the same cannot be said to joohyun. seungwan is well-loved while joohyun, well, joohyun learned the hard way that people only care about her because of petty reasons, mostly because she is breathtakingly beautiful. 

seungwan is already all of what joohyun is, and a whole lot more. and her presence is making joohyun feel small and unsure of herself. 

"joohyun?" 

she calls her name. the first time she hears seungwan say her name. it sounds different. almost strange, yet pleasant.

"have i been spacing out?"

"yeah."

"sorry." 

"did you hear what i said?"

"no."

"if you are heading home, let me walk you home. i take the same route anyway."

it is not even a question. joohyun wants to protest. the walk back to the dorm she shares with her roommate is her only meditation, and she is not going to share the experience with anyone. she should protest. "okay."

damn it.

"sweet." seungwan gleams proudly. she tells joohyun she will be back in a moment as she needs to collect her things and say goodbye to the others. joohyun watches her flash the same megawatt smile to everyone. joohyun waves goodbye at the familiar faces as well. "let's go?"

"alright."

it went more comfortable than she was expecting. the eight-minute walk to her dorm was peaceful and pleasant. seungwan was quiet, maybe because joohyun was not the most engaging anyway. she answered some short questions- about her major, the junior life, the career after. seungwan did not press on, fortunately. they took in the autumn afternoon calmness in silence, and only spoke to each other again when they were already in front of the building. "where is your dorm?"

"it's actually the other way," seungwan admits sheepishly. joohyun frowns. "but i do take the same route heading to the gate near here. i'm gonna meet up with someone. don't worry."

"okay, you should get going. it's getting colder."

"okay." 

yet, seungwan stays on her spot, hands behind her. joohyun thinks she is fidgeting again, so she asks, "are you going to ask about tomorrow?" seungwan nods eagerly. like a puppy. a cute one. joohyun does not even like puppies. "i have to work on things in the morning. i will be free in the afternoon. around four, yeah, four sounds okay."

"i got it. i'll be here by four." 

they exchanged numbers before seungwan left. joohyun writes son seungwan on her contact. the name appears across her phone minutes after she plopped down on her bed. it says: see you tom, joohyun. :) 

joohyun debates whether to reply or not. she loses, of course, and types in see you. she hits send and wishes seungwan won't text back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> edit: thanks for the kudos, guys. much appreciated.


	2. act 2

she was so ready to throw hands when someone touched her shoulder. her fists are held up when she turns to face the culprit, thick brows knitted, eyes already glaring. 

it is seungwan. a panting seungwan. she holds both her hands up in surrender, and between catching her breath and laughing, she manages to say, "i am sorry. it's just me."

her gaze eventually softens as soon as the blonde hair and small frame register to her senses. 

"gosh. you scared me."

she clutches her chest and finally sighs in relief. it is just seungwan, she comforts herself. it is seungwan.

"joohyun, the sun... is still up," seungwan's palms fall to her knees, still huffing for air. she is dressed in clothes different from the ones she was wearing just this morning, when they met the other casts and had line reading. "i am sorry. i just need to catch my breath first."

"are you okay?"

"yeah," seungwan holds a thumbs up and unzips her two-toned light jacket. "i ran from the student center. i got held up by some friends from the council. they would not let me go. i had to tell them i have a date." 

joohyun feels her heart skip a beat at the word, even when she knew what seungwan was trying to mean. "you did not have to run."

"i don't want to be late." seungwan peeks at her wristwatch, and beams. "right on the bat." 

"it's okay if you are late." 

"well, i did not want you to wait." seungwan bites her lower lip as she sneaks a glance at joohyun.

"i did not wait for that long."

"and i wanted to see you soon, again." seungwan adds immediately and quietly. her lips break into a shy smile, probably mirroring that of joohyun's. "let's go?"

they did not have anything planned out, so it was inevitable for them to not know where to start. if this was a date, they would probably be heading into a fancy diner outside campus. but it is not a date, so seungwan feeds paper bills to a vending machine nearby, and presses the buttons of their choices. a bottled milk tea drink for the blonde and an apple juice for the more health conscious joohyun drop with a clang. 

"is there anywhere you wish to go to?" she asks her as she hands her her juice. 

"somewhere nice and quiet?" joohyun shrugs. she nods at the direction of the nearby field as she adds, "and away from flying baseballs." 

"perfect."

to be fair, the campus is huge, one of the biggest, and joohyun does not have all the time in the world to venture its hidden places, so when seungwan leads her to this spot behind the amphitheater, she cannot help but to think they just crossed another dimension. and her only tether to the real world is this blonde beckoning her to join her on the bench.

okay, that would be an exaggeration.

the place is not secluded, per se, given the number of other students scattered around the still body of water. it just that joohyun did not know such place exists. this must be a popular hangout place. seungwan must be thinking of what joohyun is thinking as she mentions how she usually spends her laid-back afternoon on one of the benches when she needs to clear her mind. 

"there must be a lot, must be hard to keep up with all your activities." joohyun comments. seungwan did talk, while they were walking, about her double degree programs and of how it could be really tasking and demanding. she also told joohyun about her commendable time management. "i honestly did not peg you as someone so diligent. i mean, no offense, you always seem so laid-back and carefree."

seungwan smirks. she props her arm to her side as she faces joohyun. "so how is your first impression of me?"

joohyun pretends to think hard. through her squinting eyes, she can see seungwan's smile getting bigger. "do you remember how we first met? when you went to our table with your blonde hair and all those piercings and your smug face, and you said hello to everyone but only waved at me. i thought you were some stuck-up snob. but, you are actually okay."

"just okay?" 

the corners of her lips tug upward. "a bit above okay."

seungwan does not argue, perhaps because they both know she is a lot more than okay. perhaps that is why she still has her smug face. joohyun opens her juice bottle again and takes a sip. she is getting too comfortable around the younger even before realizing it.

"hey, joohyun," seungwan starts after the brief pause and looks at her. she looks at her a little too intently that joohyun had to avert her gaze away. "that is not the first time, joohyun."

joohyun tries to remember when was the first time. she would have easily spotted this attractive blonde in a sea of crowd. 

"oh i was not blonde yet then. i had my natural dark longer hair." seungwan tells her as if she read her mind. joohyun quickly thought of something else, just in case she would be incriminating herself further. "i saw you in the library. in the serials section, and you were memorizing lines. too focused that you did not realize i already took the seat next to you. i said hi and i waited, and waited, and forgot about the journals that i was supposed to search. you were so fixated on your task you did not notice someone's being a total weirdo next to you." 

"yah, that's creepy!"

"i know! so when i actually met you, i could not even look to you because i thought you would remember!" seungwan slouches as she laughs awkwardly. "i am sorry."

"i'm sorry i did not notice. i just get wrapped up in things. that, or i am just really lost in thought half of the time."

"you know what is amazing, joohyun? the stark contrast between the joohyun on stage and the joohyun you are right now. i watched your _mamma mia!_ production and you were so bubbly and lively, just not the same timid joohyun in the serials section who almost made me doubt of my existence. i was in so much awe, i auditioned to your play. i was so nervous, though. it was so much different than expressing yourself through music."

"you breezed through it, come on."

"i tried hard, joohyun." seungwan looks up to her. "i really tried hard. i knew i needed to meet all the joohyun that there are. and the joohyun i am with now, when she is not anyone else, i wish to know her. isn't that silly?"

the thing about seungwan's eyes is that they twinkle with so much sincerity. it is hard not to believe the words she say. joohyun lets it sink in. seungwan reverts into silence. she has been tucking her thumb in her fist that joohyun wants to hold her hand and tell her it's okay. she can be nervous. joohyun, too, has had her heart fluttering. 

"i am not much," joohyun mumbles.

"you are okay, joohyun. a lot more than you think, way more than they make you out to be." seungwan assures her. "so let me." 

the thing about seungwan is that it is hard not to fall in love with her. 

it took more than one afternoon and an offering of jacket because it got chilly during that afternoon before they got closer. it took more of seungwan walking joohyun back to her dorm after rehearsals, of good mornings and good nights, of waiting outside joohyun's class so they could have lunch together on thursdays, of running lines together at that spot by the pond behind the amphitheater, before the joohyun offstage let seungwan in. 

the joohyun she is right now sits next to seungwan, in the serials section, where it is quiet and not too crowded. seungwan has exams right before their first night and joohyun is with her to cheer her up. she can tell that all the activities and academics on seungwan's plate have been taking toll on her. 

seungwan shuts her book and crosses her arms against the table.

she sighs, catching joohyun's attention. "go nap. i'll wake you up in twenty."

"i am not sleepy." the sophomore pouts before a yawn betrays her. "i am not. and don't insist i cannot walk you home. i am not sleepy." 

"oh yeah?" 

"i am not." seungwan nestles her head on her folded arms. "i'm just taking a break." 

joohyun mirrors seungwan's position, so now she can closely observe how seungwan has been fighting off her drowsiness. she beams at the blonde, and without a thought, she gently sweeps seungwan's fringes away to the side. seungwan closes her eyes at the contact. joohyun lets her fingertip brush along seungwan's skin, from her forehead to the bridge of her nose, and then her eyebrow. seungwan flutters her eyelashes. "go to sleep, son seungwan." 

the beautiful alliteration of her name rolls off her tongue for the first time. she wonders what took her so long. she waits for seungwan's breathing to become slow and shallow before she resumes with her reading. that night, joohyun whispers the blonde's name to her pillow, few more times until she drifts off. 

the next three weeks went by too fast. the auditorium bursts of applause from the huge audience catching their final showing. the music fades, the play ends, the casts bow. before the curtain closes, joohyun takes in the moment. the lights, the stage, the whole production. this will be her last. next year, she will have to focus on her graduation. she is happy to have ended it on a high note. 

"can i get a hug?" seungwan appears next to her. joohyun rolls her eyes. seungwan does not have to ask. she walks into the blonde's open arms. she has gotten so used to seungwan's warmth, it brings her so much comfort. "thank you, joohyun."

"no, thank _you._ " she hugs back. 

the rest of the cast spots them and promptly envelopes the two leads in a group embrace. the proppies join, the tech team will not be left behind, the creatives rush in. seungwan holds her closer, tighter, from the swarm of congratulating peers. she tells them off jokingly, tells them pretty joohyun is getting cramped in. they laugh and squeezes in on them further. they only scramble away when someone points at their advisor. the mob flocks to their teacher, cajoling him for a dinner party at their usual celebratory place he owns. 

they toast to burgers and beers and loud guffaws. they share stories of their blunders, of the highlights, and their doubts. when it is almost eleven, she lets them know she needs to be home and start on the studies she unwillingly gave up for the prod. 

"i'll walk you home," seungwan offers and readies her things. joohyun rejects it, tells her she cannot take the life of the party with her. seungwan grins, stands on her chair, and announces to everyone, "i am walking joohyun home."

the crowd cheers. their friends tease them. 

"you're a dumbass, son seungwan." joohyun tugs at the hem of seungwan's shirt. she downs the rest of her beer, hoping it makes a good excuse for the flushing of her face. 

the autumn cold bites despite her layered clothes and the wool scarf seungwan just wrapped around her.

"i am used to the cold. don't worry." seungwan did mention about her childhood abroad where the weather is harsher. still, she feels bad that seungwan always has to offer her additional fabric to keep her warm. "but if you are too concerned, why not just hold my hand?"

joohyun takes it. seungwan's hands are always warm and gentle. every time they lock fingers, seungwan does it so gently.

the walk is reminiscent of their first time, only that they are more relaxed talking to each other. seungwan is easy to talk to. she listens carefully, knows when to comment and when not to. seungwan is very caring, very attentive.

when joohyun stops walking, seungwan stops as well. she does not move when joohyun leans in. she knows. she has been anticipating. she probably knows joohyun more than joohyun will ever admit to herself. so when joohyun presses her lips onto her, seungwan knows exactly what she has to do, what joohyun wants her to do.

she lets go of her hand to cup joohyun's face. the other goes behind joohyun's waist. just exactly how joohyun wishes to be held. seungwan kisses back with her soft lips. soft, soft, cherry lips. she kisses joohyun exactly as how joohyun wants to be kissed. it is not rushed, not breathtaking even. it is slow, tender, contented. 

it does not feel like the first time. it feels like they have done this before, a thousand times, in another universe where joohyun and seungwan have always been together. seungwan pecks her lips again after they part. 

"do you want to figure this out with me?" joohyun buries her face on the crook of seungwan's neck.

sweet, sweet, cherry scent.

"it took you some time, joohyun." seungwan wraps a curl against joohyun's finger, pulling her closer. "but yes, i do. so much." 

and joohyun inches forward and yearns for those sweet lips again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> exams are finally over!!!   
> 
> 
> happy reading! now i sleep


End file.
